Detailed opening sequence analysis – jaws opening scene

The setting for the opening scene is what seems to be a sunset, its is quite dark

and the sky is grey. The setting is a beach and shore line where a woman

decides to have a swim in the sea. In this scene the sea looks carm and is

reflecting the cold dark grey colour of the evening sky. There is very soft music

that plays right from the start of the film/ scene there is also sound added such

as when she jumps in the water and when she swims. The woman is panting

which shows a race towards

the sea

This shot is a fast moving shot as it follows the two people running towards the

shore line the camera zones in to a body shot on each individual along the way.

The girl who is at the front appears to be talking to the man at the back who

seems to not be as enthusiastic as the girl and appears to be following the girl

to wherever she is going as he asked ‘’where are we going’’ which she replies

‘’swimming’’ she appears to be in a hurry and wants to get swimming as soon

as possible as she is removing items of clothing as she is running.

There is a long shot pointed at a steep hill as the man in a rush to get to the girl

stumbles down the hill and appears to have been knocked out this suggests

that if anything goes wrong in the water with the girl there will be nobody

there to help her or run for help. Unaware of the situation the girl dives in and

i think this is where the viewers realise that there might be something is near.

The first scene shows a low levelled shot pointing up at a woman running

towards the sea the shot is in a panning motion and it follows the woman as

she goes down to the shore. The camera seems to move with the woman so

far along the beach as she is running to the sea. The rear shot comes in at 4 sec

and it is a snap transition to it. She is running in front of her friend which

suggests she can’t wait to get in the sea and swim and must not have any

knowledge of sharks in them waters

The second shot is a static shot of the woman with the camera on higher

ground than the woman. She is running down to the water. The woman looks

like a shadow against the dark blue sea. This again suggests a carm night where

her and her friend are going swimming without any fear.i believe the intention

they have is that they are both going in the sea at first because on the opening

run he says ‘’im coming im coming’’ and removes some items of his clothing

The next shot is of the woman swimming further into the sea the camera is

positioned away from the swimmer and is focused pointing across the level of

the water. It is in this shot that you seen a boyd that is going to play a part in

the following shots. The woman is clearly not worried about her friend that has

not joined her in the sea.

The next shot is a mid shot of the swimmer paddling around with the sunset in

the distance this suggests that the swimmer is in the sea at night and that if

anything happens to her the person that she is with can’t do much to help. This

camera angle also helps to set the scene and the time. It in in this shot that the

swimmer notices the position of the sun.

The next shot is of the swimmers legs with the camera below in the water

there is some light music playing suggesting there is nothing happening or

about to happen in this shot. There is a spot of white light where the swimmer

goes into so that the camera can pic the swimmer up. I believe this shot shows

how vunrable swimmers are in the sea and I think this shot is one of the most

scary shots they could use because it makes the audience think that there

could be something attack then at any second

It goes to what seems to be another shore line shot looking out at the

swimmer long range position. This gives a idea of how far the swimmer is out

from the shore line and how carm and peacefull everything is I believe it is in

this shot that the audience could have a idea that there is something about to

happen soon because of the length of the movie so far (44 sec) and because of

the nature of the film and that fact that the woman is out there in the sea on

her own

This is the moment where the viewers notice that there woman is in trouble

and there is something wrong I believe that because of the film and its

meaning and what it’s all about that the viewers will now know that there is a

shark attacking the woman. The camera is placed not too far away but enough

away so that you can see the ripples of the water and the boyd that the

woman is using to try and keep herself up. I believe this shot sets the mood for

this setting in the film and what occurs here will make the viewer think a

certain way about the storyline of the film e.g. where her or not there should

be people allowed to swim in the waters and the knowledge that the viewer

has been given that there has been a shark attack here will give them a opinion

and get them involved

This is where the scene ends with the person laid down on the beach ready for

someone to find the camera is pointed down at the body.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7acI5z9vyok

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrEvK-tv5OI